OUR KIDS ARE FAT!!! And guess what? Most of them are OUTSIDE the Western World.

People are getting fat all over the world. Of course OUR own culture plays the central role for our epidemic of obesity. Why other societies are getting fat may or may not be related and really does not matter at all.

Why are Americans turning into pigs?

1. Most Americans have an awful diet, laden with processed foods that use little of the body's energy to digest. Things like that matter and what many do not realize is that calories are not all that matter. 120 calories in a bag of chips might not sound like much, but it contains no fiber so one does not feel full. For the same reason it flies through the bodies digestive system without the body having to do much work (meaning the body does not burn calories to process the snack). Of course all the chemicals and crap in them does not help in terms of nutrition. The same amount of calories might be found in a nice fresh apple and a handful of walnuts, but the fiber in the food actually requires the body to BURN calories to process the food. The healthy fats in that snack allow the carbs to be absorbed more slowly too, eliminating glucose spikes. Also, the fiber is what helps one feel "full" so that apple and handful of walnuts will satisfy your hunger longer and make you feel fuller than chomping down an entire large bag of chips.

2. When American eat, most consume portions much too large. Did you know the chocolate in ONE M&M provides enough energy for a human to walk the length of a football field. Many Americans routinely eat three times the amount of calories per day they need.

3. Americans on average are FAR more sedentary than they were even several decades ago, much less several generations ago. We don't need to "work" (in the bodily sense, as in burning calories just going about one's life) as much. We have advanced laundry machines, remote controls for our electronics, garage doors that don't need to be lifted, clothes that need little to no ironing. We don't need to walk anywhere. Our lawn mowers have drive systems, our vacuums can sweep. Even our chicken can be bought without the skin, lettuce is bagged and our veggies can be bought pre-washed and cut, so we don't have to spend energy (in the real sense) cutting and chopping and preparing food -- that stuff all adds up. Calculated all up, it is shocking how our conveniences have reduced the amount of calories it takes to go through our day.. Many of our kids play on little devices held in the hand, rather than climbing trees, running around in the woods or riding bikes. Of course, most of us spend far to much time watching TV. Even in our work life, we've shifted from jobs that required us to move to jobs that have us sitting at desks.

An interesting thing to do is too look at a picture of a large group of people milling about in the 50s, see any fat people? Those people did not hit the gym everyday and they were not any smarter -- they just had to do more "work" just to live every day.

4. School budgets are being stripped (thank you short-sighted Rightwingers) so many kids do not even have a P.E. class anymore.

5. Food is everywhere and marking of junk is in our faces constantly. Our gas stations now are "convenience stores" with junk filling the shelves (maybe they might have some bananas up front). Fast "food" is are every turn. It takes real willpower to resist it. Years ago it was not so easy to get a quick bite or snag a chocolate bar or bag of Cheetos.

6. Our metabolism slows as we age, something many do not know. So if one eats the same amount of calories at age 30 as they did at age 20, that person will steadily get fatter and fatter unless they increase the bodies "work."

Many think it is just too hard to get control. There are many simple things one can do that CAN make you burn calories much more throughout the day. Use stairs for anything under five levels. It won't kill you and over time you'd be surprised what that can do. Get up and walk around every hour if you are desk bound.

In terms of how you eat, there are easy things you can do. Keep a few apples in your car and a bag or RAW nuts, so when you get an urge you'll have something healthy right there within arms reach. Give up mayo. Use plain yogurt maybe with some shakes of your favorite spice versus sour cream in dip recipes. Use olive oil with sprinkled Italian spices instead of butter sometimes. Go savory instead of creamy -- not only will it liven up your food, but spices are actually rich in certain obscure nutrients, have anti-inflammatory properties, can stimulate blood flow and even help reduce allergies (spices can have surprising benefits and add no real calories while adding lots of flavor).

Basically, little changes yield big results if stuck with over time.

Preschool children are naturall plump and its natures way of safeguarding the brain growth they require through whole foods and whole fats. PERIOD.

And this is despite most preschool children being very picky about what they eat and not eating alot of what you give them and most parents I know don't give their young kids at least, alot of junkfood. They sort of start asking for that when they notice their school age friends have this.

My children drank alot of whole milk or a long time however, no matter picky they were.

Preschoolers are plump by nature's design for the whole fats are part of brain growth and many eat like birds. I'm a mother of 5 boys.

reply to post by Unity_99


This is not about baby fat or a definition error.

These studies definitively demonstrate that some of our children are getting fatter.

I think it is important that we should know why, and stop believing this is about Western food choices and sloth.

The OP's post is kind of misleading since...

Oh... you know...

Something about...

Oh shoot, can't think of it!

Wait, got it!

www.nationmaster.com - Obesity (most recent) by country...
en.wikipedia.org...

Obesity in the United States has been increasingly cited as a major health issue in recent decades. While many industrialized countries have experienced similar increases, obesity rates in the United States are among the highest in the world.[2] Of all countries, the United States has the highest rate of obesity. From 13% obesity in 1962, estimates have steadily increased, reaching 19.4% in 1997, 24.5% in 2004[3] 26.6% in 2007,[4] and 33.8% (adults) and 17% (children) in 2008.[5][6] In 2010, the CDC reported higher numbers once more, counting 35.7% of American adults as obese, and 17% of American children
.......

Well darn, whudd'ya know?

Oh my, could I be remembering something else too?

No...

Wait... oh...!

voices.yahoo.com - Obesity and Poverty: The Poorest of Us Also Weigh the Most...

A sedentary lifestyle, that's whats doing it. You gain fat by consuming more calories than you burn. Period. Their lifestyles are terrible, they eat crap food (not crap western food just crap food) and they aren't active. They need a lifestyle change.

reply to post by XxRagingxPandaxX


That's the conventional wisdom, but I find it hard to accept where global trends are concerned.

It's hard to imagine how this is true in developing countries, where there are far less conveniences that would support that kind of physical inactivity. Moreover, inactivity can also be a symptom of obesity- not a cause.

Finally, there is no data to support that these children got that way, because they moved around less. Remember, we are not talking about adults. We are talking about children.

reply to post by loam
I love your posts always have, but this is just silly bro. You don't get fat off air, you get fat off food. You burn food by exercising. There is evidence that being active is healthier and is conducive to weight loss. You lose weight through a lifestyle change. Fat kids are fat because they eat more than they burn period. Its simple.

I believe there are probably a lot of contributing factors causing this problem but I wonder how much of role vitamin D deficency plays in this. Poor diet/ quality of food coupled with less time out doors could play a role. Plus, with the fear of sun exposure, most children are coated in high SPF sunblock every minute they are even allowed in sunlight.

Originally posted by CthulhuMythos
That is very interesting, as I always thought it was our high sugar/ fat/ carbos diet and combine that with vid games and pc's etc that is making an increase of kids being overweight, but if indeed the majority of kiddie obesity is in the non-developed world then my original view does not make sense.

So, what do you think might be causing all this global obesity?

s&f.... very good thread.

It is the carbs we are eating. For instance, years ago we ate heritage varieties of wheat. Then, fifty years ago, we developed a hybrid dwarf variety which has a huge glutinous head and contains more of the appetite-increasing compounds than the heritage varieties. Farmers were able to greatly increase their yields and their profits. So now, here we are, eating away at this wheat and it merely serves to increase our appetite and for many also causes inflammatory responses which affect our insulin levels and create all types of problems - one of which is obesity. They've also linked high carb diets to near-sightedness. Even certain breeds of dogs (such as labs) which are fed high carb diets are becoming near-sighted. Wheat is the major culprit but our GMO corn is nearly as bad.

reply to post by XxRagingxPandaxX

Originally posted by XxRagingxPandaxX
reply to post by loam

 

I love your posts always have, but this is just silly bro. You don't get fat off air, you get fat off food. You burn food by exercising. There is evidence that being active is healthier and is conducive to weight loss. You lose weight through a lifestyle change. Fat kids are fat because they eat more than they burn period. Its simple.

Generally, I completely agree. I think I'm pretty clear about the concept of caloric intake and expenditure.

However, I can not find one study with actual data that supports a conclusion these children eat more calories and expend less energy. They simply postulate the reasons for the change over the past 25 years that support this assumption.

But what I have found are studies that identify for some ethic groups a predisposition to metabolic syndrome and increases in the degree of health impact related to obesity.

Also, the one big smoking gun in developing countries is the prevalence of GMOs in staple foods during the same period. I think it unwise to so readily eliminate that as a potential factor. It's inconceivable to me that a species' diet can be changed so quickly without consequence.

Changing the genetic code of our food, without providing for ample time for our adaptation, looks pretty dangerous to me.

Just my opinion.

Finally, regardless of causation, another major point of this thread is that childhood obesity in the past 25 years takes place largely outside the developed world. Something I see the opposite of repeatedly asserted on these forums.

The US military recently declared the Obesity epidemic in the United States a "national security issue" as there aren't enough kids coming out of high school and university that pass military fitness standards, even when those standards have been relaxed over the last few years.

In five years, I think massive obesity will be looked at like we look at smokers today.

Originally posted by loam
reply to post by XxRagingxPandaxX

 

... inactivity can also be a symptom of obesity- not a cause...

no, maybe it's not stated that way... but that's how it happens... obesity/overweight bodies are caused by less energy burned than energy consumed... period...

like what this person posted...

Originally posted by XxRagingxPandaxX
A sedentary lifestyle, that's whats doing it. You gain fat by consuming more calories than you burn. Period. Their lifestyles are terrible, they eat crap food (not crap western food just crap food) and they aren't active. They need a lifestyle change.

oh and yes this too...

Originally posted by skychief
I believe there are probably a lot of contributing factors causing this problem but I wonder how much of role vitamin D [deficiency] plays in this. Poor diet/ quality of food coupled with less time out doors could play a role. Plus, with the fear of sun exposure, most children are coated in high SPF sunblock every minute they are even allowed in sunlight.

GM0 foods and hormone imbalances of Cortisol can also be a factor.... like I have already said today in this thread post that i posted.

[sorry to revive a dead thread... of last year... but I found this topic interesting and felt like sharing my 2 cents

What about transgenerational epigenetics? Many kids today are the grandkids of parents who went through a period of semi-starvation during the 30's global depression. Perhaps the rise in obesity over the last 25 years has to do with fluctuations in the average age of having a child for those who went through the famine, and those of their parents.

reply to post by wehavenoclue

[color=#FFC900]
Hmm ...
That is very thought provoking, I never thought about that. That's indeed a very probable cause for genetic starvation mode being switched on. Fear of the drought too. Famine danger. Intrigued now.

Come on people... Western world still leads the percentages in overweight, especially USA:

They 81% comes from sheer numbers difference. Over 85% of people in the world live in developing nations, it is common sense their total numbers are higher... There are more kids in the developing nations than the population of western world.

If one in four people in China is overweight, they would already have more overweight people than US population combined and that is at 25% obesity rates...

Luxembourg might only have 6000 overweight kids total compared to 1000000 in China, but if these were so China would have less than 1 % of children obese and 100% of luxembourg kids overweight...

For comparing nations in obesity, the only way is to compare obesity per capita and on that case US is the world leader.

I could not find child obesity rankings, but when all nation is taken into account, US is the world leader with over 60% of people being overweight and 30% obese...

Obesity rankings:
www.nationmaster.com...

Nearly all the top countries are from western world.
www.nationmaster.com...

Western diet and lazy lifestyle are main reasons for it, nothing else.